Love is for Suckers
by PrincessAria13
Summary: My friends have accused me of never really being able to enjoy anything I see a shiny apple, i automatically think it's poison I see a shining star, i think it's gonna fall on my head I fall in love with a boy, I know he's gonna leave. Joshaya Rucas
1. Chapter 1

"Peaches" she hears her perky brunnete friend as she approaches her at her locker.

"hi sweetie" the blond smiles at her best friend since kindergarden

"today is going to be a beautiful day" Riley says happy and in her own little world

"riles, it's high school, not Disneyland" Maya tries to bring her back to reality

"oh come on Maya you can never see the bright side of anything" her best friend has been telling her that ever since she could remember.

But it s so easy for riley to say that. She has grown up in happy world.2 parents who love her and a cute little brother who looks up to her. Everything in her world is just sunshine and daisies. Riley has never had to face the all the hardships maya has. The abandonment of her father when she was just a lttle girl and it doesn't help that her mom is hardley ever home. For maya seeing the bright side of anything was very hard.

" I think your just excited because you love looking at lucas" maya accuses

"maybe" Riley blushes

Riley has had a crush on the new kid lucas friar ever since he transferred from texas at the beginning of the year. But she has never had the guts to talk to him. She had her chance once, we were on the subway one time and she accidently landed on his lap when the train stopped suddenly but she quickly apologized and got up and she has tried to avoid him ever since.

"why don't you actually talk to him?" maya asks her

"no way he probably thinks of me as that freak that landed on him on the subway" Riley sighs

they make their way to their class

"maya we need to find you a guy" her best friend says as they take their seats in class

"yeah worry about yourself first sweetie"

"can you imagine if we both had boyfriends, we could go on double dates" she says excitedly

"yeah like that's gonna happen" maya chuckles

"come one peaches don't you want a nice boyfriend?'

Maya hasn't really ever dated. Shes been out with 1 or 2 guys but it never went as far as the 1st date. She has only had 1 real boyfriend his name was micheal, they were in 9th grade and after a month of dating he cheated on her with some sophomore.

"no thanks" Maya says

"come on maya, we can find you a great guy, maybe pete from the baseball team, he's cute."

"riles no set ups, I'm not interested in dating" she tells her friend for like the millionth time. She is always trying to set her up with someone but maya always turns her down.

"you are impossible" riley sighs

"that's why you love me" maya smiles sweetly

riley rolls her eyes and smile. The teacher walks into the classroom and class begins.

Later that day Maya was on the subway

Maya hated the subway, she hated having to be surrounded by a bunch of rude people who have no manner and just shove eachother. But unfortunately living in New York meant having to take the subway a lot.

She especially hated it when she was without Riley. She apparently had to head staright home because her family was coming to town and her mom wanted her to have everything ready for them. so she couldn't stay in art club after school with maya like she usually does. So maya was left to fend for herself.

There was no room to sit so she was left to stand up and hold on to a pole as she made her way home.

As she waited for her stop she felt someone come stand next to her

"hey baby, hows it going?" a tall dark blonde guy looks at her with a sleezy smirk.

"don't call me that" she tells him

"oh come on, I'm just trying to be nice, listen my place is at the next stop what do you say you and me get off and head over and have some fun"

"not interested" she says and starts to walk aways but they guy grabs a hold of her wrist.

"hey don't you walk away from me" the guy says very aggressively

"let me go" she demands as she tries to pull his hand away but his grip only tightens.

"let her go"

maya turns to look at who the voice belonged to and she saw a tall guy with

a leather jacket and a beanie standing in front of them.

"and who's gonna make me" the blond asks

"she says shes not interested now let her go and just walk away and no one gets hurt" the guy in the beanie says

"are you threatening me" the blond asks

"I don't make threats " beanie guy says

both guys have a stare down, the blond lets go of maya just to throw a punch at the other guy but before his fist could connect with his face beanie guy grabs his fist and twists it until blond guy is kneeling on the floor.

"ow ow ok I'm sorry man let me go" the blond practically begs

beanie guy lets go and then the subway stops

"get out of here" he tells him

the blond gets up and runs off the subway defeated

beanie guy looks to the girl he just helped

"are you okay" he asks her

maya simply nods "yes I'm ok, thank you"

beanie guy just smiles at her "no prob,"

"so do I get to know the name of the pretty blond I saved" he asks

maya rolls her eyes " I don't really talk to strangers"

he laughs "that's a pretty good rule , a lot of psychos out there"

maya tries to look any where but at the guy and waits for him to just leave but instead he stands next to her.

"I just got rid of one stalker I don't need a new one" maya tells him

he smirks "don't flatter yourself, theres no where else to sit"

maya simply looks the other way trying to ignore him

"so you visiting or do you live here?" the guy asks

"if I don't tell you my name what makes you think I'm going to tell you that kind of information, for all I know you could be some stalker who follows me home and grabs me and takes me into a dark allyway and kills me, then chops my body up and puts it in a trashbag and then just dump it in the nearest trash can, you'll take my wallet and they'll never be able to identify me" she finishes her rant

the guy just stares at her for a moment then begins to laugh"wow you are a very paranoid person"

"well this is New York, its not that far fetched" maya point out

"true" the guy agrees

the subway comes to another stop and beanie guy starts to leave the train but before he gets off he turns to maya

"take care of yourself gorgous" he winks and walks off

maya rolls her eyes but she couldn't help the smile that crept on her face.

She had to admit beanie guy was cute. But she had to realistic, she was probably never going to see him again


	2. Chapter 2

To maya riley's house was like a second home for her. She spent most of her time there instead of her own home. She loved being around a big and happy family she wished she could be a part of it.

Maya walks into the Matthews home like any typical Friday morning but this time there are a few more people than usual.

Topanga was the first to notice her

"hey maya come in and meets riley's grandparents"

maya walks up alittle nervous, she is never good when it comes to meeting new people.

"hello nice to meet you" she says politly with a smile

"its nice to meet the famous maya" says riley's grandmother who gives her a big hug. Maya is shocked at first shes not used to so much affection.

"hello maya riley always talks about you its nice to finally meet you" rileys grandfather smiles at her.

Riley comes out of the room

"hey maya youre here, and I see you've met my grandparent" riley smiles

Auggie comes out

"mommy I'm hungry is uncle josh back with the bagels yet" he whines

"he should be here any minute now sweetie" Topanga tells her son

just as Topanga says that the door opens and before maya even turns she hears a voice she recognized and thought she would never hear again.

"hello family, bagels have arrived"

"yay" auggie screams and runs at his uncle "thanks uncle josh"

maya turns and is shocked to see that stanfing there in the middle of the room is non other than beanie guy. She couldn't believe it she thought she would never see him again let alone here at riley's house.

But wait, UNCLE josh? How was he rileys uncle he looked so young, she was so confused.

Josh had been busy juggling the box of bagels and his 6 year old nephew who was jumping up and down trying to get a bagel that he hadn't seen her yet.

"calm down auggie theres plenty to go around, here ake them to the table"

he gives him the box and when he looks up he sees her

"you" he was shocked but still had a smile on his face at the sight of the girl

"me" maya answers

"now whos the stalker" josh smirks

"you two know eachother" riley asks looking between her best friend and her uncle

"we met yesterday on the subway, she thoughI was going to chop her up and leave her in a garbage can" josh laughed remembering their conversation.

"sounds lovely" riley says sarcastically. Riley grabs Maya and brings her forward to be face to face with josh

"uncle josh this is my best friend in the world Maya, maya this is my uncle josh. "

josh smiles "well Maya, it is nice to formally meet you" he pulls his hand out to shake. Maya hesitates for a second but takes his hand and they shake, but josh doesn't pull away that soon they stand there holding each others hands. Looking at each other maya feels a starnge sensation in the pit of her stomach. They stay like that until they hear someone cough. It was riley

"well maya and I have to get to school we"ll see you guys later, come on peaches" she grabs maya and pulls her away from josh and they leave the apartment.

"what was that?" riley asks her friend as soon as they were out of the apartment

Maya is still kind of in shock

"I have no idea"

On their way to school Maya walked Riley through the whole story of what happened on the subway with josh.

"wow so uncle josh really fought him?"

"not really the guy chickened out, your uncle josh had him kneeling on the floor crying in pain" maya kinda chuckles at remembering the jerk who thought he was tough.

"wow didn't know uncle josh had it in him, I mean I know he took martial arts for years but he always chose not to go using his skills to pick fights" riley tells her friend who simply shrugs having no idea why he would choose to help a girl he didn't even know.

"so what did you think of my uncle?" riley asks with a smirk

"he was okay I guess, not much to go on" maya says nonchalantly

"didn't look that way to me" riley teases

"what do you mean" maya asks

"oh nothing just that I may be looking at my future aunt" riley laughs

"your insane riley, I just met the guy " maya says trying to avoid eye contact

"you should have seen the way you looked at him"

"riley he's 3 years older than me" maya tries to reason. Even if she was interested in him Josh probably had tons of college girls after him. Girls that she could never compete with so why should she even bother.

"you guys would be cute together" riley insists

"just drop it Riley"

"fine" she sighs as they walk off to class

After school riley and maya return to riley's house where they find riley's grandparents on the couch.

"hey girls how was school?" riley's grandmother asks

"it was okay, how was site seeing?" riley asks

"exhausting we were on out feet all day" riley's grandfathers complains as he puts his feet up on the coffee table.

"where's uncle josh?" riley asks curiously when she doesn't see her uncle in the apartment.

maya gets nervous at just hearing his name

"he took Auggie to the park, he should be back soon" riley's grandmother tells them

"cool well we're going to be in my room studying if you need us" riley drags maya with her

"so you wanna stay for dinner" riley asks after her and maya enter her room

usually maya wouldn't hesitate to say yes to spend time with riley and her family but the thought of sitting across the table from josh freaked her out and she hated that she felt that way.

"um I don't know, I mean you have family visiting, I don't want to impose"

"oh come on you know your family, plus I'm sure my uncle josh wouldn't mind seeing you" riley says with a smirk

"riley will you give it a rest"

riley just giggles

in that moment they hear a knock on the door and then josh pops his head in

" hello ladies"

"hey uncle josh" riley smiles brightly her favorite uncle

Maya did her best to not let it show that she was nervous at the presense of the handsome older guy.

"hello maya?" he smiles at the blonde

"hi" she says

"uncle josh I was just trying to convince maya here to join us for dinner"

"really? I think that's a great idea?"

"see maya, your not imposing come on" riley insists

"we would really love it if you would join us maya" josh smiled at her k

maya looked at his eyes and had to look away right away

"uh okay I guess" maya

"yay" riley claps excitedly and josh just grinned at her

just then riley's grandmother walks in

"riley would you come help me with dinner"

"sure grandma"

riley and her grandmother leave for the kitchen

"I'm glad you decided to join us"

maya just nods and they stay staring at each other for a good whole mimute before maya decides to try and break the silence

" so riley says you're a student at NYU?"

"I am" josh answers simply staring at maya and enjoying how nervous he made the blonde

"riley says you paint?" josh asks

"yes I do" maya answers

maya had always loved art, it was a passion of hers, she loved capturing something beautiful as a sunset or the moon, things that people hardly ever had time to just sit down and appreciate it and its beauty.

"well maybe someday you could show me some of your pieces" josh smiles at her

maya had never let anyone see her paintings, not even riley, they were personal to her. It was like a diary where she let out all her innermost thoughts and feelings.

Before maya could answer josh's father calls for him

Josh turns to maya

"see you at dinner gorgous" he smiles at her leaving maya with that feeling in the pit of her stomach and she hated the power this guy had over her.


	3. Chapter 3

Maya always assumed the stereotypical family dinners where everyone sits around and talks about their day and joke around and laugh was only seen in tv.

Until she met the matthews family

She loved having dinner at Riley's home. She loved sitting and hearing mr and mrs Matthews discuss their day and watching Auggie and Riley tease eachother and fight over the last piece of desert. Any day she would be happy to be at Riley's home for dinner.

But not tonight

She tried to avoid making eye contact with the older boy sitting across from her. She tried to pretend she didn't notice when the older guy would take quick glances at her.

"So josh how's college treating you?" Cory asks his younger brother

"It's good, a lot more work though" josh jokes

"And med school will just get worse" Topanga adds

"Don't remind me " josh chuckles

"I can't believe my baby is almost a doctor" grandma matthews says proudly

"Mother please " josh whines

Maya finds it kind of funny how josh is embarrassed by his mother she accidentally lets out a small chuckle

Josh looks up and smiles at her but Maya quickly looks down avoiding his eyes.

"What about you girls are you enjoying your senior year?" Grandpa Matthews asks

"Yea but I'm kind of not ready for it to be over, it makes me nervous sometimes" riley tells them

He smiles and turns to his granddaughter's friend

"What about you maya, you nervous too?" He asks

"Uh a little I guess" maya says . Truth was she was terrified. The thought of finishing high school and heading out into the real world is something she felt she wasn't ready for.

"I was too, don't worry it's not as scary as you think" josh assures her

Maya looks at him and the two just stare at each other for a moment

"Who wants pie?" Topanga announces

"Me" almost everyone announces

Later that evening

Everyone had moved to the living room to continue talking. Maya looked at the time and she stood up

"I should get going"

"at this hour, it's not safe to walk these streets at night" grandma Matthews says with concern

Maya smiles "it's fine I do it all the time"

"Maybe someone should go with you" grandpa Matthews suggests

"No it's fi...

"I'll be happy to walk you home" josh interrupts her before she can finish

"No. I'm..."

"That's a great idea josh" grandma Matthews says

"I agree" riley buts in with a bright smile

Maya sends a glare at her best friend who pretends not to notice

"You really don't have to" she tells josh

"I really don't mind, plus there's a lot of psychos out there" he jokes remembering their conversation on the subway

Maya is hesitant but knows she has no choice

"Okay thanks" she goes to grab her coat

"You know you really didn't have to offer to walk me" maya tells him as they make their way off the subway and begin to make their walk to Maya's apartment

"I really don't mind maya plus my moms right it's not safe for you to be walking by yourself at night"

"I do it all the time" maya tells him

"Doesn't mean you should" josh fires back

Maya is not used to people caring about her and worrying about her and her safety. She tried to remind herself that josh was probably only doing this because she was his nieces best friend not because he actually cared about her. Why would he? he just met her.

" so your parents just let you go off on your own late at night?" Josh asks her

" well it's just my mom and no she really doesnt notice, she works late" maya explains

" oh " is all that Josh can think of

Maya tries not to roll her eyes she doesn't need pity from anyone

She simply shrugs "no big deal"

They walk in silence for a bit till josh tries to break the silence

"So uh where's your dad...if I may ask?"

"I'd rather not talk about that" she answers immediately

"Okay, that's fine you don't have to talk about it"

They arrive to Maya's apartment

"This is my stop, thanks for walking me" she begins to make her way to the door

"Maya?" Josh calls out

She turns to look at him

"if you ever wanna talk I'm a pretty good listener"

"Thanks but I'm more of "the suffer in silence type" (a/n twilight lol)

"Well in case you ever change your mind, I'll be around, goodnight maya" he smiles and turns to make his way back to the subway.

"Night josh"

She watches him until he disappears.

Back at the matthews home

Josh walks through the door and sees his niece on the couch watching tv

"Hey where is everyone" he asks looking around for the rest of his family

"They all went to bed"

He just nods and sits down next to riley

" so did you get Maya home safely" she asks her uncle

"Yes I did" josh says not taking his eyes off the tv

"So what did you think of Maya" riley asks

Josh smiled "she seems nice"

Truth was the pretty blonde had been on his mind ever since he saved her on the subway. But he wouldn't let his niece know that.

"Just nice" riley asks with her eyebrows raised

Josh just shrugs

Another truth was he found her very interesting he could tell she was a very reserved person who didn't quite open up to people easily but Josh very much wanted to get to know her.

Riley simply rolls her eyes "okay uncle josh, goodnight" she gets up and heads to her room

Josh heads off to auggie's room where he's staying and tries to get some sleep the whole time thinking about a certain blonde girl with pretty blue eyes.

The next day at school

Maya and Riley were at their lockers. Riley was trying really hard to be patient with her best friend but she couldn't take it anymore

"ok so what happened last night?" she asks excitidley

"um we had dinner at your house with your parents and grandparents" maya answers trying to avoid answering what riley really meant.

Riley just rolls her eyes

"you know what im talking about maya. What happened when my uncle walked you home?"

maya just shrugs "nothing happened riles all he did was walk me home, which reminds me"

she punches riley on the arm

"ow! What was that for?" she asks as she holds her arm

"that's for last night, why did you make him walk me?" she demands

"HEY! He was the one who offered I just agreed" riley pointed out

maya continues to glare at her

"oh come on you cant deny you liked having him walk you" riley teases

She'd be lying if she said she didn't enjoy his company, josh did seem like a good guy but she knew better than to get too close.

The bell rings

"we should get to class" maya says as she begins to walk to their homeroom

"you cant run away from your feelings" riley yells out

"watch me" maya yells back as she turns the corner

riley rolls her eyes and then realizes if she doesn't hurry she"ll be late. She closes her locker and begins to run towards the direction maya went when she reaches the corner she collides with someone and she winds up on the floor.

"oh my gosh im so sorry" says a male voice

riley looks up and realizes the person she bumped into was non other than Lucas Friar.

"are you okay?" he asks her concerned

riley realizes she was still on the floor staring at him

lucas offers his hand. Riley is still in shock but manages to get herself together and takes the hand he is offering

"oh...im..fine" riley stutters

lucas helps get her books from the ground

"thanks" she takes them

"no problem" he smiles "i'm lucas. your riley right?"

riley nods

"your dads mr Matthews the history teacher right? i" he asks

riley nods "that's me"

"we met before right? on the subway?"

at that moment riley wishes the ground would open up and swallow her and save her from this embarrassment.

"yea" she says blushing at the memory

"well its nice to finally meet you formally, I mean the last time you left in quite a hurry" he jokes

"yea, i'm really sorry about that"

"don't worry about it, well gotta get to class see you around riley" he smiles as he begins to make his way to his class.

Riley turns to watch him leave.

" I cant believe that just happened" she says shocked

Later that day as maya and riley are making their way to rileys apartment

"it was amazing Maya, l swear i can still feel his hand in mine" riley says grabbing the hand lucas had held when he helped her up.

maya laughs at her friend "that's great swettie"

they make their way into the apartment

"and I swear at lunch he smiled at me" riley says excitedly

"does my niece have a crush?"

they turn to the kitchen where they see josh sitting there with his laptop. Maya hopes no one else can hear her heart race speed up.

"hey uncle josh I thought you would be back at your dorm by now" riley tells him as she takes a seat across from him at the kitchen table.

"nope, I have a paper due next week and I focus better without my roommate blasting his stereo" josh explains he turns to the blonde

"hey maya"

"hey" she says as she goes to sit next to riley and tries to avoid josh's stare

"so whats this I hear about a boy? Does riley have a boyfriend?" he teases his niece

riley rolls her eyes "he's not my boyfriend he's just a boy from school" riley explains. Her phone rings "its my mom, ill be right back" she gets up and goes to her room.

Maya panics as she realizes she will be left alone with josh

Josh turns to maya "so who's this guy?" he asks

Maya turns to look at him "uh he's just a guy from our school." She says simply

"what's he like?" he asks. his protective uncle instincts kicking in

"uh not sure never talked to the guy. he transferred here at the beginning of the year" maya explains

Josh simply nods then looks at the blonde sitting across from him

"so what about you? Any guy in your life?" he asks curiously

"nope"

"I find that hard to believe. you're a very pretty girl"

she could swear that he was flirting but she tried to convince herself that he was just being polite but she still blushes.

"so what about you?" she asks

"what about me?" he teases

"any girl in your life?" she asks

"nope, no girl in my life"

"Now i find that hard to believe" she fires back not knowing where this sudden surge of confidence came from.

"why?" he asks

"i bet all those college girls are all over you"

josh gives a small laugh as he looks down as well

"i guess i just I haven't found the right girl yet" he says as he looks up and has his eyes on maya

She finally looks him in the eyes and they stay there looking at each other. Until they hear footsteps coming. Riley appears back in the kitchen.

"hey my mom wants me to go pick up dinner" she explains

"uh ill go with you" she stands up and they make their way to the door

"bye maya"

maya turns around to take one last look

"bye josh"


	4. Chapter 4

Next Day at School

Riley is alone at her locker when she feels eyes on her so she turns and catches Lucas staring at her before he looks away trying not to get caught making them both blush.

"What's got you so happy" Maya says as she approaches

"Nothing" Riley says hiding her face in her locker

"Oh really" she looks over across the hall and realizes what's going on

"so it has nothing to do with the fact that Friar is staring at you right now?" Maya teases

Riley turns again and Lucas again turns away

"I don't know what you are talking about" Riley asks innocently

Maya rolls her eyes at her best friend as she opens her locker to get her books.

At that moment the girls other friend Farkle approaches them

"Ladies"

"Farkle" They say together

"What are we talking about?" he asks

"About..." Maya starts

"Nothing, we were talking about nothing" Riley interrupts Maya

"Ooookay"Farkle says deciding it was better not to know

At that moment Lucas comes up to the group

"Hey Farkle here are your chemistry notes thanks for letting me borrow them."

"No prob, Lucas Riley and Maya, guys you know Lucas my science partner" Farkle introduces

"Yeah I met Riley the other day" he looks at the brunette "Hi, again"

"Hi" Riley says with her goofy smiles and Lucas just smiles at her then turns to the blonde

"Nice to meet you Maya" he smiles politely

"You too" Maya nods.

Lucas turns back to stare at Riley

"Well I have to get going, bye" He smiles at Riley

"Bye" Riley says

Lucas takes one last look at her and makes his way to his friends to walk to class

"Oh yeah you both have it bad" Maya teases

"Shut up" Riley blushes

"Girls are weird" Farkle mumbles as he walks away from the girls to his next class

It was time for Mr. Matthews history class which the 3 friends had together along with Lucas. Once they entered the class Lucas and Riley eyes connect and they smile at each other, Maya simply rolls her eyes at them and goes to sit at her seat which happens to be in front of Lucas.

A few moments later Mr. Matthews enters the class and Maya eyes widen when she sees that he's not alone with him is non other than Josh who sees her sitting at the front of the class and smiles at her and Maya quickly looks down.

Maya can hear all the girls whispering about who "the cute hottie" was. Maya wanted to roll her eyes at the girls.

"Hello class I would like to introduce you to my younger brother Josh, he's a student at NYU and he has to do community service hours for one of his classes so for the next couple weeks he'll be here helping me out" Mr. Matthews explains

This couldn't be happening! Maya thought. Now she had to see him everyday here in class how was she going to get through that.

Most of the girls in class were excited to hear that he would be here. Maya tried to hide her annoyance at the thought of all the girls flirting with him while he was here. Maya tried to tell herself she didn't care. Why would she?

Josh goes to sit in the back but not before smiling over at Maya.

The rest of the class went by without any disturbances Maya avoided looking back to stare at Josh. Before they knew it the bell finally rang and the class began to exit.

"So you excited?" Riley teases

"About?" Maya asks

"My uncle being here"

Maya shrugs "No big deal"

Riley rolls her eyes and gets up "See you at lunch" Riley leaves to her next class leaving Maya by herself.

She was finishing packing up her stuff when she feels someone approach her and she hears that familiar voice.

"So looks like we'll be seeing more of each other"

Maya looks up and sees Josh standing by her desk with smiling at the blonde

"Yeah looks like it" Maya says

Maya looks over to see some of the girls huddled together staring at Josh and whispering

"Looks like you got some new fans" Maya mumbles

Josh looks over to where Maya was looking and sees the girls and then turns back to Maya

"Is someone jealous?" He smirks at the blonde

Maya scoffs "Of course not why would I be jealous"

Maya gets up and begins to head toward the door when Josh stops her

"Don't worry, they're not my type" Josh says staring straight at her

Maya doesn't know how to respond so she just turns and walks away and Josh just stares at her as she leaves.

The rest of the day was fine and then lunch came and Maya and Riley were seated with Farkle at the cafeteria when Josh approaches them.

"Hello Niece" He says to Riley

"Hey uncle Josh, what are you doing here?"

"Well I would rather not sit with Cory and a bunch of old guys in the teacher's lounge. Is it okay if I join you guys?" he says

"Of course"

Josh takes a seat which happens to be next to Maya. Maya tries to act as cool as she can especially when their shoulders touch.

"Uncle Josh this is our friend Farkle" Riley introduces him and they shake hands

"So how was your first day?" Riley asks

"Pretty good, not much to do today so I just watched Cory teach" Josh shrugs

"Wel it's just the first day" Riley assures him

"Yeah that's true"

All of a sudden Cory approaches them

"Ah Josh I'm glad you are here , I finally found something for you"

"Oh really what?" Josh asks

"Well Maya had a little trouble on the last test so I thought maybe you could tutor her"

Maya couldn't believe this was happening

"That sounds good, I'd be happy to help" Josh smiles at Maya

"What do you say Maya" Cory asks

"Uh, yeah I guess" Maya answers. What other choice did she have.

"Then it's settled, you two can set up a schedule that works good for both of you" Cory leaves the 4 alone again.

"Could this day get any worse" Maya thought


	5. Chapter 5

Maya walks into her apartment

"Mom you home?" she shouts and gets no answer "Of course not " she mumbled to herself

she sets her things on the couch and then throws herself onto it as well as she just lays there. The rest of her day had gone okay, she hadn't seen Josh since lunch so they hadn't gotten a chance to talk about scheduling for her tutoring which she wasn't in any hurry to begin. She had never been this way with a guy, usually she didn't care what guys thought, she was never nervous around them and was always able to speak her mind.

So why was Josh so different?

Whenever he was around she got all tongue tied and nervous. She hated that she felt like she wasn't herself.

All of a sudden her phone rings and in unknown number pops up

"Hello" she answers

"Hey it's me"

Maya doesn't even need to know who "me" is she would recognize that voice anywhere.

"How did you get my number?" she asks

Josh chuckles "I have my ways"

"You mean your niece?"

"That would be it yes"

"Well what can I help you with?" she asks

"I just thought we should at least set up some times to begin your tutoring"

Maya tried to hold back her sigh, she would have to do it eventually might as well it it over with

"Im free any time after school this week" she tells him

"Excellent, how about tomorrow I come over at about 6, I have a late class" he explains

"Okay" she replies

"I guess I'll see you tomorrow " he replies

"Yeah" is all Maya can say

They both stay on the line with neither saying a word just hearing the other breath.

"Bye Maya"

"Bye Josh"

They both hang up

Next day at School

Maya is at her locker getting her things for class when her perky brunette friend skips over to her with a smile on her face.

"What's up crazy?" Maya asks her as soon as she's standing right next to her

"Nothing, what about you?" she asks

Maya looks confused "Uh what about me?"

"Did my uncle call you?"

Maya rolls her eyes "Yes Riley my TUTOR did call me to discuss when to study" she says emphasizing the Tutor part to make sure she understood that was all there was between them.

The brunette simply rolls her eyes. At that moment Lucas and his friends are walking down the hall when he passes Riley and Maya he turns and looks at Riley and smiles at her

"Hey Riley" he calls as he and his friends continue down the hall

Riley gives him small smile as she waves shyly she turns back to her friend

"So looks like you too are getting very chummy" the blonde teases. Riley tries to hide her blush and she begins to walk to their homeroom as Maya follows close behind her.

The day went by fast and soon it was time for History with Mr. Matthews

Maya entered with Riley and sees Josh with Cory at his desk, Cory was showing his brothers some papers and explaining something. Maya headed straight to her desk without being noticed. Josh looked up from what his brother was telling him and sees the blonde sitting in the front and smiles at her before looking back at Cory.

Maya tries to pretend like she didn't see it but unfortunately for her Riley did see.

"Just your tutor huh?" she asks with a smirk. Maya rolls her eyes at her best friend. Lucas enters the class and as he walks by he smiles at Riley and it's Maya's turn to smirk.

Riley rolls her eyes "shut up" she mumbles and Maya giggles.

"Hello Ladies" Josh says as they approach their desks

"Hey Uncle Josh, Hows it going?" Riley asks

"Pretty good, Cory is basically just giving me busy work" he motions to the papers in his hand.

He turns and looks at the blonde "So you ready for our study session?"

"Yeah, can't wait" she tries to say sarcastically

Josh smiles "Don't worry I'll try to make it as enjoyable as i can" he teases and heads off to his seat in the back. Riley can't hold the smile back

"He so likes you!" she practically bursts

"No he doesn't "

"Please he was so flirting you"

"No he wasn't " Maya insists

"Denial is not just a river in Egypt"

Maya rolls her eyes at her friend and faces class waiting for class to start.


	6. Chapter 6

The day had ended and Maya was at home getting ready for her study session. Josh was due there any minute and Maya found herself sitting on the couch feeling nervous for some reason. She had no idea why, she had no reason to be all he was doing was helping her with history. She tried to tell herself to calm down but she still felt her leg shaking impatiently as she waited for him.

Soon there was a knock on the door and Maya quickly stood up but she tried to compose herself before she opened the door. She took a moment to take a deep breath and then walked over and opened the door.

"Hey" he smiled at her

"Hey" she tries to say as naturally as she can they stand there for a moment till Maya finally steps aside and lets him in.

Once inside Maya notices him taking in the whole apartment. As he did she for some reason felt self conscious, Her apartment was nothing compared to the Matthews, but it was big enough for her and her mother (when she was here) and that was all that matter.

"Nice place" he says.

"Thanks, so uh should we get started?"

"Sure, where would you like to do this?" he asks her.

"Uh, I guess the table" she directs him to her small table where she had placed her bag. As soon as they sat down she takes out her textbook and she sees Josh take something out of his own bag.

"So Cory gave me your test so I could see what you're having trouble with" he explains. Maya nods and does as she is told when asked to open her book.

They begin to go over the test and the questions that Maya got wrong, It's a little rocky at first but eventually Maya began to feel she was getting the hang of it.

Josh seemed to be very patient and happily repeated when Maya was not understanding which Maya was very appreciative of. Maya tried her best to pay attention but at times she found herself staring at Josh as he spoke and not paying attention to anything he said instead she payed attention to how his forehead creased when he was thinking and how he used his hands for emphasis. Maya would shake the thoughts away and concentrate on the textbook instead.

"Well I think we did enough for today, see it wasn't as bad as you thought it was going to be" Josh teases

Maya chuckles "No I guess not"

They stay silent for a moment neither knowing what else to say.

"Hope I wasn't too much of a pain to teach" she teases

Josh chuckles "Trust me no pain at all" he smiles at her and she gets goosebumps.

Josh looks at the clock "Well it's getting late, I should get back"

"Okay" Maya says and for some reason she is kind of sad to see him go but she tries to hide it.

He packs up his stuff and Maya walks him to the door.

"So uh I won't be helping Cory tomorrow but how about we have another study session tomorrow?" he asks

Maya nods "Okay"

Josh smiles "Good, well I'll see you then. Night Maya" he says

"Night" she says staring at those pretty brown eyes he had. She tries to snap herself out of it.

He leaves and Maya closes the door and leans her back against the door and sighs.

"So how was the study date?" is Riley's first question when she sees her best friend at school the next day.

Maya rolls her eyes "It was not a date Riles"

"Whatever, so how was it?" she asks

"It was okay, he's a pretty good teacher" She couldn't help the smile that crept on her face.

"Yeah, I remember when we were younger I had trouble in Math so he spent all summer helping me" Riley smiles at the memory

"That was nice of him"

"Yeah he's always had a big heart, always willing to drop anything to help someone"

Even though they had only known each other for only a couple days, she could tell that Josh was very sweet and kind, he seemed to really care about his family. Maya was so in her thoughts that she didn't realize they had arrived to their class till Riley snapped her out of it.

"What were you thinking about?" She asks smirking

Maya rolls her eyes and enters the class. As she sits down she gets text message

 _Can't wait for out study session later ;)_

Maya tries to hide the smile that was forming


	7. Chapter 7

Maya was finishing up reading the chapter Josh had assigned her to read. Once she was done she looked up and saw Josh staring at her.

"What?" she asks self-consiously

"Nothing" Josh looks down and Maya could swear he was trying not to blush. She tried to ignore it.

"I think it's time for a break, don't you think" Josh asks

"Agreed" She pushes her book away eager to get a couple minutes of rest she gets up and heads to the refrigerator "Would you like some water?" she asks Josh

"Sure thanks"

She opens the refrigerator and grabs too water bottles and heads back to the table

"So how was school?" Josh asks her as she hands him his bottle

"It was okay, your brother went on and on about the principles of US Government or something like that, I don't know I kinda of tuned him out"

"And now we know why you need the extra help" Josh chuckles

Maya laughs too "Yeah I guess paying attention would help huh"

"But then we wouldn't get to have this one on one" Josh smiles

Her eyes meets Josh and her stomach flips and she feels her cheeks begin to heat. She looks down to make sure he doesn't notice.

"So uh how were your classes?"

Josh smiles seeing her nervous "It was fine had a huge Biology paper to finish, Thats why i wasn't there today" he explains

Maya nods "Will you be there tomorrow?" she asks curiously

Josh smirks "Why , miss me already?"

Maya rolls her eyes "You wish"

Josh smiles liking her sassy side. His smile and the way he stared at her made her stomach do another flip, she looked away and back to her books.

"We should get back to work" she says

Josh chuckles "Do I make you nervous?" he teases

"Of course not" Maya tries to say confidently as she opens her book again to read

Josh tries to hide his smirk he just sits and watches her as she reads and taking in every detail, like how her eyebrows raise in concentration and how he can see her mouth move as she is reading the words. He couldn't deny that she was very beautiful.

He was so lost in his thought he didn't hear Maya ask a question about what she was reading until she waved a hand in his face to get his attention.

"Hello anybody there?" she asks as she waves her hand in his face

"Sorry, I uh got distracted" he says

He had to get better at keeping his mind on work

The next day at school

Riley and Maya are making their way through the halls

"So anymore run ins with Ranger Rick?" Maya asks

Riley sighs "No nothing, he hasn't spoken to me in days"

"Maybe he's just nervous" Maya suggests

"You think?" she asks

"Trust me Riles the guy likes you"

"You really think so?" Riley asks hopeful it makes Maya giggle at how adorable her best friend was.

"I do"

They enter Mr. Matthews class

"Uh oh" Maya hears Riley says

"What?" Maya asks. She turns to look at where she is looking and sees what she is talking about . Up at Mr. Matthews desk she sees Josh talking to one of the girls from the class.

"Don't worry, it's probably nothing" Riley assures

"Whatever i don't care" Maya mumbles as she goes to sit at her desk.

She tries not to look up at them but she can't help it and she finds herself watching as they talk. It was so obvious the girl was totally flirting with him, she twirled her hair like a moron as she gave him a flirty smile.

It made Maya want to barf

"They're probably just talking about class" Riley says

"I don't care Riley" Maya repeats

"Sure that's why you haven't stopped looking at them since we got here"

"I can't look away cause it's so disgusting how desperate she is"

Riley laughs

"I have never seen you jealous before, it's so cute" Riley squeals

Maya rolls her eyes "I'm so not Jealous"

"Sure your not"

"Hello ladies"

They look up to see Josh standing over them, the girl had already moved to sit by her friends who were all giggling.

"Hey Uncle Josh, see your making new friends"Riley teases

"Yeah Sarah was just asking questions about University" Josh shrugs

University yeah right Maya thought she could barely spell university

"Hello Maya how are you?" Josh says turning to the blonde who was very silent

"Fine" Maya says as she looks at her textbook and tries to avoid looking him in the eyes.

"Everything okay?"Josh asks sensing some tension

"Fine" Maya repeats

Before Josh could ask anymore Cory entered the classroom

"Hello class take your seats"

Josh takes one last look at Maya before going to his spot in the back.

Class quickly ended, and Maya begins packing her things

"Hey"

Maya looks up to see Josh

"Hey" she says

Riley looks between the 2

"Uh i'll see you later Maya" she dashes out the door before Maya can say anything

"You okay?" Josh asks

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" she answers

"I don't know you just seem upset is all"

"I just have a lot on my mind" Maya answers

"Anything I can help with" he offers

"No I'll be fine" she assures

Josh nods "Okay if your sure"

Maya nods. At that moment Mr. Matthews approaches

"Hey you two glad you guys are together so i can give Maya this" he says as he hands Maya something

"What's this?" she asks

"it's the pop quiz from the other day" he explains.

Maya looks at the paper and she cant hide her smile

"An A really?" she asks

Cory nods "Good work Maya, your really improving, I see the tutoring is paying off" he says

"Yeah it is" Maya agrees truthfully

"Well keep it up" he says as he returns to his desk

"Congrats" Josh says smiling at how excited the blonde was

"Thanks, and thanks for your help" she says

Josh smiles "Anytime"

He really is a sweet guy Maya thinks

"I should get to class" she says

"Okay, well I'll see you around"

Maya nods "See ya" she says as she leaves the classroom

Josh is left staring at her as she leaves

Cory walks up to Josh "Everything okay Josh?"

"Yeah I'm good" Josh says turning to his brother

"Well I just want to thank you for helping Maya, I knew you were the right person for the job" Cory tells his brother

Josh smiles "Thanks Cory, and it's no problem I actually like hanging out with Maya'

Cory smiles "I'm glad, Maya's tuff she doesn't open up to a lot of people"

Josh nods "Yeah she's a little guarded but I hope soon she'll be able to open up to me"

"I hope so" Cory nods as he goes back to his desk. Josh follows

"Hey can I ask you something?"

"Sure" Cory says not looking up from his desk

"I 've asked Maya before but she didn't want to answer i think it is a delicate issue for her"

Cory looks up "What is is?" he asks curiously

"What happened to her father?" he asks

Cory sighs "Yeah that is a sensitive area for her, but it's not for me to tell you Josh"

"Does it have anything to do with why she is so guarded?" he asks

"Yes I believe it has a lot to do with it, I've known Maya since she was a kid and her life hasn't always been easy, she doesn't have a big support system at home, Topanga and I have tried to be there for her as much as we can but theres only so much we can do."

Josh nods

"That's also why Im glad you too are getting along" Cory says

"Me too" Josh smiles deep in thought.

He felt like Maya was really starting to accept him and that made him happy, he really wanted Maya to be comfortable around him and be another person she could count on.

He knew it wouldn't be easy, But he felt that Maya was worth it.


	8. Chapter 8

Maya is exiting her class and heading for her locker when she runs into Farkle

"Hey Farkle" she greets

"Hey, Maya how was class?" he asks as they continue walking

"It was okay" she answers as they continue walking

"listen I'm in a hurry i have an appointment to get to but i have to find Lucas and give him our notes" Farkle says motioning to a notebook he was holding.

Maya stares at the notebook and at that moment she got an idea

"I can give it to him" she says

"Really?" he asked

Maya nods "Yeah don't worry about it, you head off to your appointment, I'll make sure Lucas gets it"

"Thanks" he says as he hands her the notebook "I'll see you tomorrow" he says as he heads for the exit.

Maya reaches her locker and opens it , putting the notebook inside ,at that moment her best friend appears

"Hey peaches" Riley says

Maya smiles "Hello" she looks over across the hall and sees Lucas arriving to his locker with 2 of his friends

"Oh look theres Lucas" Maya says

"Yeah so" Riley says

"Go talk to him" Maya urges

"Maya I can't just go up to him" she says as she looks at her friend like she is crazy.

"What if you had an excuse?" she asks

"Yeah that would be great, but i don't" Riley says confused at what was going on

Maya pulls the notebook out of her locker and hands it to Riley

"What is this?" she asks looking at it confused

"It's the notes Farkle had to give Lucas, he was in a hurry so now you can give it to him" she says

Riley stares between the notebook and Lucas and then back at Maya.

"Maya I can't" she begins to protest

"Yes you can" Maya insists

"But he's with his friends "

"So, just go" she gives her a push toward Lucas

Riley nervously walks up to him "Hey" she says

Lucas smiles brightly "Hey"

"Lucas we'll catch up with you later " his friends say before walking away and leaving Lucas and Riley alone.

"How are you?" Lucas asks

"I'm good" she answers. She's not sure what to say next but then looks down and sees the book in her hands and remembers her excuse.

"Uh..Farkle had to leave but here are your notes" she says handing him the notebook

"Oh thanks i needed those" he says taking the book from her. "Thank you" he says smiling

"No problem" Riley answers with a small smile

They stay silent neither knowing what else to say

"So.." Lucas begins as he rubs the back of his neck "are you going to the dance this weekend?" he asks

Riley tries to remain calm "Yeah I was thinking about it"

Lucas nods "Cool so maybe i'll see you there?" he asks

Riley nods "Yeah"

"Cool, well i have to get going, but i'll see you around?" he asks

Riley nods

"Cool, well bye"

'bye"

He smiles at her and then heads for the direction his friends went, she watches him walk away, she tried to be cool but inside she was about to burst.

Meanwhile across the hall

Maya was watching her friend, she was so distracted she didn't feel someone approaching until they are right by her

"Spying are we"

Maya jumps startled, she turns to see Josh standing next to her with a smirk

"You startled me" she says throwing a punch

Josh chuckles as Maya rolls her eyes. He looks over to what Maya is looking at

"So that's the guy?"

Maya nods "Yep, thats him"

"I know him , he's in Cory's class with you guys"

Maya nods "Yep, his name is Lucas" she explains

Josh nods as they continue to watch them interact

"So what are you still doing here?" Maya asks

"I didn't have class today so I thought i stay and help Cory" Josh shrugs

Maya nods "aww have nothing better to do than hang out at high school" she teases

Josh chuckles "What can I say, I have no life"

Maya smiles at him. They continue to watch the awkward teenagers across the hall

"Does Cory know about this?" Josh asks

"You're not gonna rat her out are you?" Maya asks looking at him, knowing how overprotective Mr. Matthews gets

"Naw, what kind of cool uncle would I be if I ratted on my niece" Josh teases

Maya chuckles "Yeah you're the coolest" she says sarcastically

"Well we all can't be naturally cool like you Hart"

"It does come naturally for me" she teases making Josh laugh and Maya joins him as she giggles. She had to admit she liked hanging out with Josh, he made her laugh, and he was so kind. She told herself not to get close but it was hard not to.

"He does seem to really like her" Josh comments as he looks at Lucas and Riley

"How can you tell? Maya asks curiously

"By the way he looks at her" he says as his gaze returns to Maya and they stand there staring at each other for a moment

They hear someone clear their throat, they turn to see a smirking Riley

"Hey how'd it go" Maya asks

"Good, he asked if I was going to the dance?" Riley tells them

"Really? that's a good sign, maybe he'll ask you to dance" Maya says smiling at her best friend

"You think?" She asks hopeful

Maya nods

"So what were you too talking about?" she teases making Maya roll her eyes and Josh chuckle

"We were just wondering if your dad knows about Lucas" Josh asks

Riley's eyes widen "You're not going to tell are you?"

"Don't worry about it, Your secret safe with me" Josh assures

Riley smiles "Thanks Josh, you're the best"

"I know" Josh chuckles "Well I have to get going. I'll see you guys later"

"Bye Uncle Josh"

Josh turns to the blonde "Bye Maya"

"Bye" she says

They stare at each other for a moment before Josh makes his way to the exit,

Riley turns to her best friend "you guys are totally in love" she gushes

"Your crazy" Maya says as she turns back to her locker

"Come on Maya it's so obvious you like him, you should see your face when he's around"

Maya continues to go through her locker

"Fine, be stubborn, but it is also obvious he likes you too, his face lights up when he sees you or even mentions you"

Maya remains silent

"I think you guys would be really great together" she comments before making her way to the exit. Leaving Maya alone with her thoughts


	9. Chapter 9

It was the night of the school dance

Maya and Riley had gotten ready at Riley's house and had now arrived at the auditorium that had been decorated in a starlight theme with stars illuminating the whole place.

"It's so pretty" Riley muses as she looks around.

"Yeah it's really nice " Maya agrees

Riley finds Lucas standing over in a corner with a group of guys. He looks over and sees her and smiles and waves at her. Riley shyly waves back.

"You gonna ask him to dance?" Maya asks

"No way" Riley says

They walk over to the drinks where they run into Farkle and Smackle

"Ladies" Farkle greets

"Farkle" both girls reply

"Hey, Riley what's your uncle doing here?" Farkle asks looking behind the girls.

Both girls turn around and they see Josh

"What's he doing here?" Maya asks her best friend

"He may have heard that the other chaperone had backed out and he may have volunteered to help my dad" she says innocently.

Maya looked over to see him standing with Cory, he must have felt her looking because he looked over and saw them and he smiled and waved at the blonde who turned away quickly.

A new song comes on

"Come on lets all dance" Smackle exclaims. The four teens step onto the dance floor and begin dancing.

They dance for a couple songs until they get tired and decide to take a break. They head to table and grab a drink.

"Don't look now but a certain cowboy is staring at you right now" Maya teases

Riley turns to catch Lucas staring at her, he gives her a quick smile before returning to the conversation with his friends.

"Wait, you like Lucas?" Smackle asks surprised

"Where have you been the last year" Maya asks. Riley rolls her eyes

"uh Riles don't panic but he's coming this way" Smackle comments

"What?" Riley asks eye wide turning to see the blonde making his way over

"Be calm, stay cool" Maya instructs her friend

Riley takes a deep breath and tries to look calm

"Hey" Lucas says

"Hi" Riley

"Let's go dance" Smackle tells her boyfriend as she pulls him to the dance floor

"I have to go...somewhere" Maya says as she quickly walks away from them

Riley rolls her eyes at her so called friends

"Having fun?" Lucas asks

"Yeah i am I'm having a great time, How about you?"

"Yeah its been fun" he answers

Riley nods as they both stay there not knowing what else to say

"So..." Lucas begins

"So.." she repeats

"Do you maybe wanna dance,,with me?" he asks and Riley felt she could sense some nervousness in his tone.

"Yeah" she tries to answer calmly without freaking out

Lucas smiles as he takes her hand and leads her into the dance floor

Maya had decided to give them privacy so she walked over to a corner where she stood and watched her best friend walk onto the dance floor and put her arms around his neck. She smiled as they began slow dancing, , she had to admit they were cute together.

"What's a pretty girl doing all by herself"

Maya turns to see Josh

"Hi" she replies

"Hey" he says smiling at her

"I didn't expect to see you here" she tells him

"Yeah well Cory said the teacher helping him chaperone bailed on him so i offered to come help" he shrugs.

Which was true. As soon as his brother mentioned the other day when they were alone in the classroom that he had to find someone to help him, he jumped at the opportunity, especially if it meant spending more time around a certain blonde.

"So you have nothing better to do than spending it in a high school dance with a bunch of teenagers" Maya asks teasingly

"I guess I like hanging out with you guys" he answers truthfully. Maya wasn't sure how to answer so she simply stared ahead at the dancers.

"So you having fun?" he asks

"It's okay, I guess" she shrugs "What about you, how's chaperoning?" she asks

"It's okay, nothing too exciting" he says

Maya simply nods in acknowledgement

"You look gorgeous by the way" he comments

Maya feels her cheeks begin to burn but she tries to hide it

"Thanks, Riley picked it out" she confesses. Which was true she would never choose such a pink and girly dress for herself.

"Well she may have picked it out, but it's the girl who makes the dress beautiful" he says truthfully

Maya swore she could hear her own heartbeat but she tried to ignore it and gave him a small smile

"Thank you" she says

Josh chuckles "I love making you nervous"

"You don't make me nervous" she tries to say confidently

"Oh really?" he says taking a step towards her

"I have to go find Farkle and ask him something" she says and walks away leaving Josh chuckling as he watches her make her way to Farkle and Smackle who were standing at the other end.

"You look really nice tonight" Lucas comments as they sway to the music

"Thanks you too" she replies

"Sorry if I'm not the best dancer" he confesses with a nervous chuckle

Riley giggles at how adorable he is "You're doing pretty well" she tells him

"Well, it helps that I have a great partner" he says smiling at the tiny brunette

Riley looks down to hide her blush

Maya had been ditched once again as her friends all went to dance. She watched all the couples as they slowed danced. A few guys had approached her and asked if she would like to dance but she politely denied explaining that she was not in the mood. Truth was she wasn't tired, she just didn't know how to slow dance and she didn't want to make a fool our of herself

As she stood there watching her friends, she hadn't realized that someone had come and stood next to her.

"Ditched again?" Josh teases

"Looks that way" she answers

"Why aren't you dancing?" he asks curiously

"Didn't feel like it" she shrugs

"Why not?" he questions

"Just cause" she says starting to get impatient

"Because I don't" she answers simply

"Because you don't want to or cause you don't know how?" he asks

"Of course I know how" she lies

Josh stares at her for a moment before he extends his hand out to her

"Come on then" he says

"What?" she asks confused

"Let's dance" he says and grabs her hand and pulls her onto the dance floor. He grabs both her hands and places them on his shoulders and then puts his hands on her waist as they start swaying to the music.

"See all you have to do is follow your partner" he encourages her

"Yeah but I'm stepping all over your feet" she says not being able to hide the giggle

"I don't mind" he tells her honestly

"How'd you get so good at dancing?" she asks curiously

"My sister taught me back in 8th grade when I went to my first dance" he explains

"Well she is a pretty good teacher then" she compliments

"Yeah but I don't tell her cause it will go straight to her head" Josh teases making Maya laugh

"You know, I'm glad you ran into me that day in the hall" Lucas says

"Really? why?" Riley asks

"Because it gave me an excuse to talk to you" Lucas confesses

"Really?" she asks shocked

Lucas nods kind of embarrassed "Yeah, I've been wanting to ever since we met on the subway" he confesses

"Yeah again, sorry about that" she says

"Don't be it was adorable" he confesses

Riley gives him a small smile as they continue to dance.

"Riley?" Lucas suddenly asks

Riley sees that he looks a little nervous "Yeah?" she answers

"Would you..."

Before he can continue, The music changes and it becomes more louder and they can't hear each other.

"WHAT?" Riley asks not making out what he had just said

Before Lucas could try again. Missy head cheerleader came and grabbed Lucas so they could dance leaving Riley

After the music changed Josh and Maya headed for the punch bowl

"So now not only have I tutored you in History now I have tutored you in dance" Josh teases

"Yeah your a triple threat" Maya teases

"That's only 2" he points out

"Ok I may need help in Math too" Maya jokes making Josh laughs

"Well I'll be happy to help" he says

"Lets just get through history first"

Josh chuckles "deal"


	10. Chapter 10

"So how was dancing with your cowboy?" Maya teases her best friend as she approaches the brunette who was sitting down at one of the tables

"Cowboy? really?" the brunette asks her

"Well it was between that or Huckleberry, Oh and Ranger Rick" the blonde informs her as she takes a seat next to her

"Clever" Riley chuckles

"So how was it" she asks again

"It was okay" she shrugs

"You don't sound happy about it" the blonde points out

"We were having a great tIme and then all of a sudden Missy grabbed him away" she explains sadly

"I'm sorry sweetie" she consoles her best friend

"And he was about to ask me something too" Riley exclaims

"Really? he was gonna ask you out?" Maya asks excited

"I don't know! maybe" she says "dang Missy" she grumbles before looking back at her blonde friend

"So how bout you, you having fun?" Riley asks

"Yeah, it's not as bad as I thought it was going to be" she confesses.

"Dance with anyone?"

"Uh yeah, I danced with Farkle for a bit...and Josh" she answers hesitantly

"You danced with Josh!" she asks too excited for her liking

"It was no big deal Riles" the blonde shrugs like its no big deal

Before the brunette could respond Josh approaches the girls holding to cups

"Thought you girls would like something to drink " he says as he hands them each a cup of punch

"Aww thanks Uncle Josh that was nice of you , isn't he sweet Maya?" The brunette asks her best friend

Maya nods "Yeah thanks" she says giving him a small smile

Josh smiles as he takes a seat next to the blonde

"So how has your night been going niece?" he asks Riley

"Okay I guess" she shrugs "How about you are you having fun" she asks her uncle

"I certainly am" he says stealing a quick glance at the blonde who tries to avoid eye contact

The end of night had arrived and it was time for everyone, they had just said their goodbyes to Farkle and Smackle

"You sure you don't wanna spend the night?" Riley asks her as the are grabbing their bags

"No thanks maybe another night, I should really get home" she informs her

"Okay text me when you get home" she orders

"Yes mother" Maya mocks her

The best friends hug and say their goodbyes before Maya starts heading out

"Leaving already?"

Maya turns to see Josh approaching her

She nods "Yeah"

"I'll walk you"

"You don't have to" she tells him

"Maya it's almost midnight, I'm not letting you walk all by yourself" he tells her

"I don't want to make you" she tells him

He smiles "I really don't mind Maya" he assures

"Okay, Thank you"

"Let me just tell Cory I'm leaving and we'll go" he tells her

The walk to the subway was kind of silent but not an uncomfortable silence

It was the kind of silence where you didn't feel the need fill the moment with talking

it was kind of nice

They make their way off the subway, a wind starts picking up and Maya hugs herself to try and warm herself

Josh notices and starts to take his jacket off

"Here" he says as he wraps it around her. She realizes that it was the same coat he wore the night they met at the subway

"What about you?" she asks as she pulls his jacket tighter to keep herself warm. She could smell his cologne which smelt very good.

"Don't worry, I'll be fine" he assures her

They continue to make their way to her place

"So did you have fun tonight?" he asks

"It was interesting, I've never been to a dance before" she admits

"Never?" he asks

Maya shakes her head "No, Riley would always beg me but I always said no"

"Why?" he asks

Maya shrugs "I don't know, It just wasn't my thing" she admits

He looks over at the blonde and smiles "Then what is your thing?" he asks curiously

Maya thinks about that for a moment before answering "I don't know. I guess art"

"What do you like about art?"

She hesitates before answering

"I like that you can express yourself without using any words, I love capturing a moment that people miss because they are too busy moving through their fast pace lives , like at night when all the stars can be seen or early in the day when the sun is just beginning to set. Art shows beauty that otherwise we don't see right away."

Josh stares at the blonde amazed that how passionate she was, he had to admit everyday he learned more about the blonde and everyday he became more intrigued by her.

"Sorry, I usually don't pour myself out like that" she admits

Josh chuckles "No, no Maya don't apologize, thats was amazing, I wish I had something I was passionate about"

Maya smiles, she had never been so open with someone, not even with Riley, sure she told Riley most things but there were still some things she preferred to keep to herself.

But with Josh she felt like she could say anything.

Before they knew it they were in front of Maya's building

"I would love to see some of your paintings one day"

"Uh I don't really show my pieces"

"Why not?" he asks

"They're usually just for me" she explains

"Well I'm sure people would love them" he smiles

"You've never seen them before"

Josh shrugs "It doesn't matter, I know they're great, anyone who has the kind of passion you do must be a brilliant artist"

Maya smiles "Thanks"

Josh lifts his hand and grabs a piece of hair that was in her face and places it behind her ear.

That one move sent chills down her whole body

"Well, I..I better get inside"

Josh smiles "Okay I'll see you soon"

Maya nods "kay"

She begins to make her way to the door as she walks she realizes something.

"Your Jacket!"

Josh smiles "keep it, it looks good on you, Night Maya"

He begins to make his way back to the subway and Maya tries really hard to hide the smile that was forming on her face.

"Night Josh" she whispers


	11. Chapter 11

1 Week Later

Maya was by herself at her locker when she sees her best friend approaching her

"Morning Peaches" Riley greets her too happy for Maya's liking

"Okay you are way too chipper for it being early in the morning" Maya informs her

Riley rolls her eyes as she opens her locker "So you coming over after school?" she asks Maya

"Sorry can't I'm helping my mom, one of the waitresses called in sick so I'm gonna go help her out after school"

"Boo we haven't hung out since the dance, I'm started to feel neglected" Riley pouts making Maya giggle

"aww sweetie, I promise tomorrow we can hang out" she assures

"too late i may already have plans" Riley says

"No you don't" Maya shakes her head

"I don't " Riley smiles her goofy smile

"Dork" Maya giggles

"But you love me anyway"

"I do" Maya smiles at her best friend before turing back to her locker

"Plus I'm not the only one who has noticed your absence?" Riley adds

"What do you mean?" Maya asks confused

"My Uncle Josh even asked about you" the brunette smirks at her best friend.

Maya tries to keep her face emotionless as she stares at her locker to avoid looking at Riley

"Oh really?" She asks

"yep he actually has been coming over more frequently than he had before"

"Maybe he likes hanging out with your family, I know I do" Maya shrugs

"Maybe, but I think it has more to do with a certain someone " Riley teases

"Auggie?" she tries to act dumb

Riley rolls her eyes at her friends denial

"You know who I mean Maya"

"Riles please I'm not in the mood to hear your theory"

"It's not a theory! its a fact, whenever he comes he always asks about you?"

Maya couldn't help the butterflies she got in her stomach to hear that Josh actually thought about her and asked about her.

"lets change the subject"

Riley rolls her eyes at her best friend's stubborness

"Fine, how did you do on the last quiz my dad gave me"

"I got an A" Maya says proudly

"I'm so proud of you, looks like those study sessions are working out" Riley teases again

Maya rolls her eyes at her friend but smile at her best friend's persistnece but her smile starts to fall when she looks over the brunettes shoulder. Riley notices and is about to turn around to see what her best friend was looking at but Maya quickly grabs Riley by the shoulders and keeps her from moving.

"Don't turn around"

"What? why?" Riley asks confused

"Do you trust me?" Maya asks

"More than anyone" The brunette answers immediately

"Then trust me when I tell you not to turn around"

"Okay if you don't want me to I won't" Riley assures her

Maya hesitates for a moment but decides to let her go.

"oh wait I lied" Riley exclaims and then turns around but then wishes she had listened to Maya.

Across the hall stood Lucas but he wasn't alone. Standing extremely close to him was none other than Missy, she has her hand on his shoulder and was whispering something in his ear. Riley turned back around.

"I'm sorry sweetie" Maya says

"It's okay, I'm fine" Riley forces a smile

"Riles" she begins but she cuts her off

"We should get to class" she informs her before heading to their homeroom, Maya frowns but follows her best friend .

Maya kept an eye on her best friend who seemed to be okay but Maya knew her best friend

The rest of the day had gone by quickly and soon it was time for History with Mr. Matthews. Lucas was already in his usual seat, when Maya and Riley walk as soon as he sees the brunette, Lucas smiles but he smiles slightly falls when he notices she heads straight to her desk without looking up at him avoid him.

Maya takes her seat next to her best friend "you okay sweetie?"

"I'm fine" Riley says smiling but Maya could tell she was faking but she decided not to push. Before they could continue speaking Mr. Matthews entered the class and started class.

The whole class Maya kept an eye on her best friend who seemed to be fine but Maya knew better. She also noticed Lucas staring at her but Riley seemed to pretend like she didn't notice.

As soon as the bell rang Riley qucikly grabbed her things to leave and headed out the door with Maya following quickly beind her.

After school Maya made her way inside the diner, it seemed like she came in the middle of a bust shift

"Oh thank goodness you're finally here baby girl" her mother says as soon as she sees her daughter "we're swamped Becky picked the wrong day to call in sick.

"No problem, happy to help" she assures as she leaves her stuff behind the counter and pulls her hair up.

"Well table 5 is still waiting to order and table 7 needs a refill" her mom informs her as she picks up a plate and taking it to one of the tables

"I'm on it" she says as she grabs the coffee pot and began to work.

A few hours have passed and the diner became less crowded with only a few customers, Maya was in the middle of cleaning tables.

"Thank you again for helping out baby girl" Katy says from the counter

"your welcome" Maya tells her as she moves on to the next table to begin picking up the dirty dishes.

"Oh i almost forgot that i need to go to the bank before they close do you mind helping Sheila close up?"

"Sure you go ahead, I'll see you at home" she assures her mom

"Thank you baby" Katy says as she heads to Maya and kisses her on the forehead as she makes her way out of the diner.

Maya continues to clean the table when she hears the bell jungle from the front door indicating a new customer, Maya didn't turn around but she could hear that it was a group of people coming in.

"I swear she was totally checking me out" she hears one of the guys comment

"yeah right" another guy snorts

"Josh, you saw her, she was wasn't she"the first guy asks

Hearing that familiar name caught her attention and when she heard his voice she froze she looked over to see the group of people that had just entered and among them there he was

"Sure she was" Josh says before he looked away from his friends to look around the diner when a familar blonde catches his eye, he smiles as he makes his way over

"Hey" he greets smiling brightly at the blonde

"Hey"

"I didn't know you worked here?"

"I don't, I just help out sometimes, my mom's one of the waitresses" she explains

He nods "Thats cool"

Maya nods as the two find themselves standing in the middle of the diner

"Friends of yours?" she asks nodding over to the group that was sitted over in the corner

Josh had completely forgotten he did not come alone

"oh, yeah they're just my study group" he explains

Maya nods and then goes back to finishing emptying the table, she can still feel Josh's eyes on hers as she continues to work.

"Josh we're ordering!" they turn to see one of the classmates Josh had come in with looking at them, Maya could sense the girl was given her death glare"

"I'll be right there Chloe" he says before turning back to the blonde

"You should probably get to your friends" Maya tells him

Josh nods even though he knew he should get to his study group he really wanted to stay and talk to Maya.

"Yeah I guess I should" he says before heading over to the table

Maya watches him walk to his friends and sits in the empty seat which happens to be next to the girl who had called Josh over, Chloe.

Maya could see the girl getting closer to Josh. She had to look away and continued working.

It had come time to finally close up, Josh and his friends were still there, Maya tried hard to pretend they werent there but she couldnt help herself and at times she would catch herself looking over.

Maya was currenty at the counter doodling on a notepad when Sheila, one of the waitressws came up to her.

'Maya hunny do you mind closing up for me, Billy's home with the flu and I really need to see him" Sheila explains

"Yeah don't worry I can handle it"

"Thank you sweetie" she says as she gives Maya the keys and heads out.

Josh and his friends were the only ones left but they had already payed and were getting ready to leave. She begins cleaning up and putting chairs up.

Once she heard the bell of the door ring she thought she was alone untill she heard Josh.

"Need help?" he asks as he walks over to a table and starts putting the chairs up.

"You don't have to"

"I don't mind" he assures

"What about your friends?" she asks as she goes to lock the door and turning the sign from open to closed.

"I told them to go on without me?" he answers as he continues to put the chairs up.

Maya began sweeping the floors

"So you help your mom a lot?" he asks

"Only a couple times a week, when they are short on waitresses" she shrugs

"I'm surprised I haveny seen you before here my friends and I come here often"

"Maybe you have and you just didn't notice"

"Believe me I would have noticed" he smiles before walking over to her and taking the broom from her "I can finish that, you can check to make sure everything in the kitchen is turned off and then we can head out"

Maya nods "okay thanks"

She heads over to the kitchen as Josh finsihes sweeping. As soon as everything is turned off and swept up Maya grabs her bag from under the counter.

"Thanks again Josh"

"Anytime" he smiles as he heads over to the table he was sitting at to grab his jacket.

"Come on I'll walk you home" he says as he puts on his jacket

"Josh you don..."

"are we really gonna do this again?" he asks amused "I want to" he assures

Maya can't help but smile "Thank you"

They head out and Maya locks the door behind them. They begin making their way to Maya's apartment.

"So how was Cory's class today?" he asks as he puts his hands in his pockets to keep them warm

"Okay I guess we just did review for the midterm

"let me know when you want to do another study seesion to get you ready for it" he offers

"Thanks i'll let you know, but I don't want to take away from your own studies, or your friends" she says

"I honestly don't mind Maya" he assures her again

"Thank you Josh" She smiles

"You hungry, theirs a place that serves great burgers right around the corner" he asks

"Oh thats okay I'm" she begins to protest

"Come on you been on your feet for hours and I can bet that you havent eaten, you must be starved" he insists

Josh was right about that, she hadn't eaten since Lunch and her stomch was about to start growling from hunger.

"Okay" she agrees

Josh smiles "great come on"

They head over and quciky order and take a seat

"So anything new in your life?" Josh asks as he rests his elbows on the table and leans forward to look at the blonde sitting across from him.

Maya shrugs " not much school and working at the diner, how about you"

"Same just busy with school and helping Cory" he explains

Maya nods "So how was your study group?" she asks

"It was okay, just some boring calculus stuff" he shrugs

Maya nods "sounds fun" she says sarcastically

Josh laughs "Yeah it is kind of a pain but if you wanna be a doctor its apapparently really important"

At that moemnt their food arrives

"Must take a lot of dedication" she comments

Josh nods "It does but I think in the long run it will be worth it"

"So what made you wanna be a doctor?" she asks curiously

"It's kind of a long story" he says

"I got time" she shrugs

Josh looks at her for a moment before he begins

"Did Riley ever tell you the story of how I was born?" he asks

Maya shakes her head "No she didn't"

"I was a premature, mom's water broke during her baby shower. When I was born I had trouble with my lungs, I couldn't breath. The doctors immediatly took me and put me in ICU without even letting my parents see me. The doctors said i was very critical and theyr weren''t sure I would make it"

Maya sat there shocked "I had no Idea, I'm so sorry"

"Doctors said I was a fighter, and as a kid I had issues with asthma and I had to be vey carefull

"That must have sucked" Maya symphasixes

"It did" Josh nods "thats why when I got older I decided I wanted to be a doctor and help other babies who went through what I did"

Maya was amazed "Wow that's..." couldn't find the right words

Josh chuckles "Yeah I know it may sound silly"

"No, no Josh it's not silly at all, its amazing"

Josh smiles as he looks down and plays with his food

"So what about you what are you planning on studying?" he asks

Maya shrugs "I haven't really thought about it" she admits "I'm not really sure right now"

"You know NYU has a great Art program"

"Major in Art?" she asks

"Yeah, why not it's something you like" he shrugs

"Yeah but I just never really thught of studying it or doing it for a living"

"Well maybe you shoud, you would do great in it"

"How would you know if you've never seen anything ive done" Maya asks

"Only cause you won't let me" Josh reminds her "But I hope someday you will let me" he adds

Maya can't help but smile at his eagerness to see her paintings "Maybe someday

Josh smiles "well I can't wait for someday"

Maya looks down to hide her face and hide her blush

After they had eaten Josh walked her home

"Thanks for walking me"...and for dinner" she adds again, and for helpping me close up the diner" she adds one more time

Josh laughs "it was all my pleasure, so I'll see you tomorrow in Cory's class?"

"I'll be there unfortunately" Maya says making Josh laugh again

They stand there for a moment before Josh leans in and gives Maya a quick kiss on the cheek, before pulling away he stays leaned in

"Goodnight Maya" he whispers in her away before pulling away leaving Maya a litle dazed

"Night" she says before heading inside. Josh stands there to make sure she makes it inside safely before he begins making his way home.

That night Maya couldn't help the smile that was on her face as she layed awake not being able to get the memories from this evening out of her head. She had never met someone who was so unselfish and caring as Josh was , he was kindhearted and caring. No other guy had treated her with so much kindness. Maya knew she was getting too close.

She had tried not to get too close to anyone. Because once you get close you start to get your hopes up and once with get hope you only wind up disappointed. Maya just hoped she was wrong this time

But as Maya knew

Hope is for suckers


End file.
